Tag Archives: HR News

HR News, News

Employers unprepared for raft of legislative changes coming into force next month, warns Worknest

Many employers are struggling to be ready for the series of employment law reforms that are set to come into effect on 6th April, with more than 20% of businesses questioned yet to prepare for these coming changes.

This is according to new polling by employment law and HR consultancy firm WorkNest, who asked nearly 300 HR professionals how ready they were for a host of imminent changes to workplace laws. These include new regulations governing leave for carers, the introduction of new maternity and paternity leave protections and reforms to flexible working rights. 

Least prepared for redundancy rights change 

The WorkNest findings show that employers are least prepared for a new law that will enhance redundancy protection for pregnant workers and those taking family leave. 

Employers planning redundancies post 6th April will need to quickly adapt to the change in law, which extends the existing protection for those on maternity leave faced with possible redundancy. From April, this will apply to all expectant employees, from the moment they disclose their pregnancy, until their baby is 18 months old.

38% of respondents revealed that they are unprepared for this new law and a further 37% stated that while they are actively working towards being ready, they aren’t there yet. 

Employers also unprepared for new carers leave law

Employers are similarly unprepared for a new law that will give employees with long-term caring responsibilities the right to a week of unpaid leave. Just nine per cent of those questioned by WorkNest stated that they are fully prepared for this law to come into force. With millions of unpaid carers in the UK, it is very likely that most employers will be impacted by this reform.

Matter of weeks to be ready 

Whilst the majority of these reforms officially come into effect after 6th April, several will apply before this date. For example, a new law that will allow fathers and partners to take their paternity leave as two non-consecutive weeks and give a shorter amount of notice (four weeks) prior to each period of leave, kicks in on the earlier date of 8th March.

Although this will only apply to children whose expected week of birth begins after 6th April, employers might need to act quickly to make adjustments to their workforce planning to deal with such issues. WorkNest’s poll, however, shows that almost one quarter of employers say they are unprepared for this change in law and just under half are ‘somewhat prepared’. 

Facing up to flexibility 

There is a little more readiness for the introduction of the new right for employees to request flexible working from day one of their employment, with just over one in five saying that they are very prepared for this. Flexible working and how this is managed amongst employees continues to be high on HR’s agenda, but there is still a similar percentage (just under one in five) of employers who say they are unprepared.


David Eastwood, Head of Team and Solicitor at WorkNest said:

“The clock is ticking for employers to be ready for this legislation. We haven’t seen anything like this number of changes to employment law for some time, so it is no wonder many employers and HR professionals are struggling to get to grips with it all. Many of these areas of legislation are complex and it can be difficult to know where to begin. We have recently noticed a flurry of calls from employers asking questions about these forthcoming reforms and advice on what they should be doing, so despite the fact that these changes are looming large, it’s clear that not all employers are all set for April.

“For employers that haven’t made a start in preparing for these changes, our advice is to not delay any further as it can take time to adapt. Establish as soon as possible which laws are most likely to affect your employees and set about reviewing your policies, processes, contracts, workforce planning and operational systems as a priority. It is also worth considering things like training for managers, so they are up to speed with the new legislation.

“Of course, with a General Election on the horizon, further changes could be around the corner, and we know that HR professionals are concerned about the prospect of this. We all need to stand ready to deal with whatever might come our way but for the time being, these new laws are on the statute books and so employers must be ready to comply with them or risk potential legal consequences.” 

News

5 ways to increase employee productivity

Ensuring productivity is at its highest throughout the workforce is extremely important and impactful to a businesses performance, which is why it should always be a top priority to make sure that employees have the best support and materials that will allow them to be the most productive they can possibly be. 

Since employee engagement and retention is key to business success, organisations are always asking how to increase productivity and work efficiency. Increasing employee productivity doesn’t always mean spending a lot of money. It is important to start with the small things as these will build your success. Rewarding employees for small wins or mini-milestones will encourage them to go the extra mile at work and will inspire a more productive workforce. Ian Edwards, COO and co-founder of rewards and incentivisation platform, BeeLiked 

Set goals

It is important to sit down and set goals with your employees as they will be more productive if they know what they’re working towards. Ian explains “Employees feel more fired up and motivated to achieve if they know what’s expected of them. Make sure your organisation’s mission and goals are clearly communicated. Encourage employees to use their available productivity tools to carry out assignments and meet targets.” This is the perfect time to introduce and discuss rewards for when employees achieve the goals set for them. A great way to do this is to create a playful rewards program that shows appreciation for the little wins and targets met. The great thing about rewards programs is that they can be ongoing which motivates employees to continue to work productively develop. 

Provide feedback 

Providing detailed feedback to employees provides them with the information they need to improve and will make them want to try harder to achieve their goals. Positive feedback also motivates employees to keep up the hard work and go above and beyond in everything they do. 

Ian explains “Offering constructive feedback is an incredible way to foster employee growth, improve trust and communication and strengthen bonds. To ensure feedback is given and received in the most productive way possible, be sure to avoid giving unsolicited advice, be specific, practice empathy, encourage a two-way conversation and focus on performance, not personality. Instead of waiting for quarterly or yearly reviews, make feedback a regular part of company life. And always be sure to follow up to see if an employee is putting the feedback into action or needs further guidance.”

Create a more productive working environment

A very important factor to increasing employee productivity is ensuring that everyone is working in an environment that encourages productivity. With people returning to work after months of remote working, now is the time to improve the office. Ian explains “Keeping the office clean, sprucing the workplace up with new paint and fixtures, bringing in more natural light, removing clutter, and setting a congenial tone that reflects your organization’s culture are all small steps that make employees feel more comfortable and relaxed which, in turn, makes them more productive. Employment productivity can only be achieved if employees feel they work in an environment which meets their needs and allows them to work at their best capacity.” 

Use productivity apps 

Once you’ve mastered the basics, it’s time to consider what else can be introduced into the workplace to increase productivity amongst employees. A great initiative that can be introduced is the use of productivity apps. These are tools employees use at work to make tasks easier and streamline workflows, playing a key role in productivity and work efficiency.

There are thousands of productivity apps available for personal and business use, but the best ones aim to help employees get organised, improve habits, and increase focus. An example of one of the best productivity apps is Google’s ‘G Suite for Business’ which contains Gmail, Docs, Drive, Calendar, Meet, and more. It also includes shared calendars, video and voice conferencing, and a team messaging app. It’s all designed to make work more collaborative and productive to achieve great results.

Provide incentives and rewards 

Employers are constantly being reminded to reward employees for their hard work and include incentives to encourage them to work harder. Employee incentive programs keep employees engaged and motivated, and celebrating achievements through rewards will make employees feel appreciated for the hard work they’ve put in, and will inspire them to work harder. Employees who feel appreciated are healthier, experience less stress, and have fewer sick days. 

Gamification is a great way to reward employees and also gives them an incentive to be productive at work. Organisations can use entertaining games such as Spin the Wheel, which employees can win prizes from every time they reach a goal or target set for them to achieve.  

Ultimately, it is up to you to decide which methods will work best for your business to encourage productivity, but the key thing to remember is that when employees feel recognized for what they do, their happiness increases and they will inherently work harder for the business to produce great results.

Environment News, News

Whitepaper finds manufacturing workers are still being exposed to dangerous levels of air pollutants in the workplace

A new whitepaper by Global Action Plan and Zehnder Clean Air Solutions finds the quality of the air in the manufacturing sector continues to be underplayed and not acted upon with workers in the UK still being exposed to unhealthy levels of airborne hazards and pollution. The whitepaper further presents a renewed case for tackling air pollution in industry workplaces with urgent actions for policy makers, regulators and manufacturers.

The whitepaper, titled “With Every Breath We Make: Ensuring Healthy Air for Manufacturing Workers”, identifies:

  • An estimated 440,000 workers with health conditions that are exacerbated by air pollution are still being exposed to unhealthy levels of airborne hazards and pollution in manufacturing workplaces.
  • The presence of airborne hazards causes production issues, product quality and that impacts profit margins.
  • Current regulation allows levels of airborne hazards and pollution that are dangerous to manufacturing workers’ health.
  • Regulation enforcement is not meeting the necessary standards.

Urgent action is required to protect workers who are unable to work remotely given increasing evidence shows that poor air quality worsens underlying health conditions that make a person more vulnerable to complications if they contract COVID-19 and workers in the manufacturing sector are at greater risk of being exposed to dust, toxic particles and pollution.

The most urgent action from the whitepaper, which is supported by the Trade Unions Clean Air Network (TUCAN) and the Hazards campaign, is to call on the government to update regulation to lower the acceptable limits for air pollutants in the industrial workplace, echoing the call from the Institute of Occupational Medicine (IOM) and Trades Union Congress (TUC) that limits be changed to 1mg/m3 for respirable dust from the current 4mg/m3 COSHH trigger.

In addition to the government call, the whitepaper further advises that regulators review exposure limits of all air pollutants, beyond current regulation and in line with new research which finds that airborne hazards can cause health conditions including heart attacks, cancer, diabetes, cognitive function, and depression. This includes launching long-term research programmes which combine air quality monitoring in manufacturing sites with tracking of workforce health issues.

Manufacturers are also urged to review the business case for action on air pollution, with help from the authorities and adopt measures to eliminate airborne pollution.
For an exclusive overview of the whitepaper, regulators, manufacturers and professionals in the health & safety sector are invited to attend a free virtual seminar, “Every Breath We Make – Ensuring Healthy Air for Manufacturing”. On November 5th at 12pm, Global Action Plan and Zehnder Clean Air Solutions will present an exclusive overview of the whitepaper and provide further detail on the latest scientific evidence as well as what manufacturers can do to protect their workers and advocate for better practices in the sector. Additional guests include MP Geraint Davies, Chair of the All Parliamentary Group on Air Pollution (APPG) and Graham Petersen, Founder of Greener Jobs Alliance.

The full whitepaper, titled With Every Breath We Make: Ensuring Healthy Air for Manufacturing Workers, can be downloaded here: www.cleanairworkplaces.org

Chris Large, Co-CEO, Global Action Plan: “Manufacturers are increasingly paying attention to employee wellbeing, especially as workplaces look to become COVID-secure, but the quality of the air and the working environment continues to be underplayed as a foundation of good employee wellbeing. Regulators must enforce lower limits to protect the hidden heroes who have continued to work throughout the pandemic, especially given ongoing research increasingly links poor air quality to the worsening of COVID-19 symptoms. Current regulation continues to allow unacceptable levels of airborne hazards and pollution that are dangerous to manufacturing workers’ health.”

Ben Simons, Head of Clean Air West Europe, Zehnder Clean Air Solutions: “We’ve been working with our clients in the manufacturing sector for a decade now so we’ve come to understand the importance of Clean Air to their businesses. What this report highlights is both the serious health issues that need to be addressed to protect workers but also the opportunities that there are for businesses to take positive steps which in many cases will be more than paid back by increased efficiency.
Given the challenges posed for the sector in this moment, along with Global Action Plan we felt the urgency to share this with as wider audience as possible to give manufacturers the knowledge and guidance to help them understand the changes they can make now to put their business and people in a heathier, more sustainable position for the long term.

We also want to appeal to lawmakers to ensure that these long-term health effects are not ignored in the current health crisis and that we take the time now to set a course for UK manufacturing that supports its successes in the next decade and beyond.”

Hilda Palmer, Hazards Campaign and the Trade Unions Clean Air Network (TUCAN): “The full harm and inequalities to workers caused by toxic chemicals and dust in workplace air is not captured by official figures but is enormous, killing tens of thousands each year, making hundreds of thousands seriously ill. Trade union safety reps using their full legal rights to consultation, involvement in risk assessments and safe systems of work, have reduced workers exposure to many toxic substances, and made union organised workplaces far safer and healthier. We welcome this initiative to increase the rights of all workers to reduced exposure levels and increased enforcement of health and safety law, especially the control hierarchy of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health, COSHH, Regulations. Workers and trade unions are at the forefront of the fight to eliminate and substitute harmful substances first, use effective engineering controls, administrative controls next, and PPE only as a last resort.

Trade unions in TUCAN want to create cleaner jobs for all workers and citizens by removing unequal exposure to the toxic substances that kill and make them ill.”

Engagement, HR News

Employee Appreciation Day: why we think it makes good business sense

David Wheeler, Head of Learning & Development, ABM Aviation UK explains why Employee Appreciation Day works for their organisation:

Research clearly shows that in businesses like ours, one of the first steps to delivering enhanced customer experience is to engage employees and energise them by recognising and sharing examples of great service delivery and positive customer feedback.

A 2017 report from CX experts the Medallia Institute highlighted the importance of involving team members. The report states that “employees are highly accurate in their assessments of customer satisfaction and the quality of their company’s service delivery. If you give them more opportunities to share their insights and suggestions, you’ll be far better equipped to understand and respond to your customers.” *

The teams on the ‘front line’ with direct customer experience can provide great insight and feedback on how they feel their own performance could be improved.

Research also clearly supports the argument that the morale and engagement of employees directly impact customer satisfaction. And customer satisfaction directly impacts how well companies perform – a point which management consultancy Bain & Co has been making for many years.

Maurice Fitzgerald, former VP of Customer Experience for HP and HPE’s $4bn software division, says “in high-touch businesses” – ones where direct employee-customer contact is high – “variations in employee satisfaction explain 16.8% of the variations in customer satisfaction. Among well-represented industries, the nine hotel chains top the list at 61.8%, followed by 17 supermarket chains at 49.1%.”

ABM Aviation UK is very definitely a “high touch” business; we provide front-line airport services such as Welcome Team Ambassadors, Passengers with Reduced Mobility Services (PRM) and travel retail and experiential staffing through our Blackjack Promotions division. Our experience is that engaged and motivated employees contribute in a big way to customer experience.

Customer services companies – a category I would include ABM in – need to be talking to their staff and their customers, to find out what both groups think are important and what both groups think the company is doing well and needs improvement

It’s also incredibly important to thank team members and reward them for doing an outstanding job, because if they feel part of the family, this will be reflected in their daily interactions. According to a study conducted by Robert Half, the third most important contributing factor to the happiness of UK employees is ‘feeling appreciated’.

The majority (79%) of the 24,000 working professionals from eight countries surveyed said it was an equal balance between employer and employee as to who is primarily responsible for employee happiness. However, when it comes to showing team members they are appreciated, we think it is key that senior figures in our organisation are able to demonstrate their recognition of outstanding work done throughout our divisions and seniority levels.

At ABM Aviation UK, we have a variety of ways to thank our team members. For example, since 2012 we have the 110% Club program that recognises employees who have really gone ‘above and beyond’ in delivering services. Those who score most highly in our quarterly celebration are rewarded with trips to interesting and glamourous locations.

Last month we hosted our most recent 110% Club Legendary Service awards, where 15 individuals were recognised for their contributions. The awards are an opportunity to put the spotlight on the varied departments in our organisation – and the people powering them. As we’re on the subject of Employee Appreciation, here are a couple of examples from our team used at the recent awards which I’d like to share…

Aishah Davies joined ABM Aviation UK as part of our supported Internship programme in June 2019, as a passenger service agent in Heathrow Terminal 2. Aishah has always shown an enthusiasm for her role and as she says herself, “I now get to live and breathe my passion of helping people every day”. Aishah was also highlighted recently at a Heathrow Employment & Skills Academy event where her good work and dedication was discussed in front of Heathrow CEO, John Holland-Kaye and Lord David Blunkett, as well as many other representatives from companies working within Heathrow. Aishah’s employee journey was used to demonstrate how well Heathrow and ABM work together to inspire and help young adults into full-time employment through the Internship Programme.

As well as encouraging younger team members in their early career successes, it is as important to recognise the continued service of longer-serving staff. Happiness and interest at work decline with age, while stress increases as more responsibility is given, and as the Robert Half report states, “manager’s moods are contagious”. As Google research concluded this week, “managers not only matter, but they can significantly influence the performance of their teams”.

Wayne Saunders has worked with us since 2018. He currently holds the position of Heathrow Terminal 2 PRM Manager and has been a huge asset across a number of contracts and, indeed, different terminals at different airports since joining us. In December 2019, Saunders did a fantastic job as stand in General Manager of PRM services in Heathrow T2 when Robert Rabbetts was on leave. We were delighted to consolidate the numerous compliments and acknowledgments we received from the wider team by awarding him at the 110% club Legendary Service ceremony.

The workforce of every organisation and industry will face unique blockers to employee happiness, some personal, some systemic; as employers it is important to recognise the factors we can control. One commonality is this: teams who know their work will be seen and appreciated are far more likely to engage with their work and contribute to your organisational aims.